Russia, Ukraine report large-scale exchange of missile, drone attacks on each other's capitals

Russia and Ukraine each reported Thursday that their respective capital cities had come under large-scale missile and drone attacks from the other side.

The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that Russian forces launched large-scale strikes on Ukraine in the early hours of Thursday, using ground-based precision weapons and drones.

The targets hit included Ukrainian military-industrial enterprises involved in the production and storage of medium- and long-range cruise missiles and drones, transport facilities in Kiev, port facilities in the Odesa region, and maritime vessels serving the Ukrainian armed forces.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on social media Thursday that 630 drones attacked the Moscow region overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, most of which were destroyed by air defense systems at long range, while another 163 were intercepted as they approached Moscow.

Sobyanin said the attack occurred between 20:30 Wednesday and 04:00 Thursday, injuring two people in the New Moscow region. The injured are receiving medical treatment, and emergency rescue teams are working at the sites where drone debris fell.

On the Ukrainian side, the Ukrainian Air Force reported Thursday that since 18:00 Wednesday, Russian forces had carried out large-scale joint strikes on Ukraine using multiple types of missiles and 210 drones of various types. The main target was Kiev.

According to preliminary data, as of 09:00 Thursday, Ukrainian air defense forces had shot down or suppressed 181 Russian drones of various types, including 87 jet-powered drones. Another 10 drones remained in the air, and Ukraine continued its interception operations.

Meanwhile, Russian strikes were confirmed to have hit 32 locations, and debris from downed drones was found at eight locations.

Ukraine's State Emergency Service said Thursday that Russian forces had launched large-scale ballistic missile strikes on Kiev starting on Wednesday night, damaging six districts including Pechersk in central Kiev and Obolon in the northern part of the capital city. The attacks have so far killed one person and injured 22 others, damaged buildings, cars and transport infrastructure in multiple locations, and caused fires in several areas.

Russia, Ukraine report large-scale exchange of missile, drone attacks on each other's capitals

The navy of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Thursday that it had struck four "violating" ships in the Persian Gulf in recent hours, while three other "offending" vessels caught fire after hitting naval mines west of the Strait of Hormuz Wednesday night.

The four targeted ships, which had crossed an "illegal" route in the strait, were detected and hit in the northern central Gulf while engaged in a ship-to-ship transfer of oil cargoes, the navy said in a statement released by the IRGC's official news outlet Sepah News.

All four vessels were targeted simultaneously and set on fire, it said, adding that maritime companies had been warned against crossing "illegal" routes in the Strait of Hormuz.

The navy said the three vessels that struck naval mines the previous night caught fire and were forced to stop.

It added that the U.S. government's insistence on inciting ships to pass through the "illegal and mined" route had led to a daily increase in maritime incidents, warning that if the U.S. military continues to do this, the confrontation could extend to its bases in the region.

The navy said its forces still manage and control the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran tightened its grip on the strait on Feb 28, barring safe passage of vessels belonging to or affiliated with Israel and the United States following their joint strikes on Iranian territory.

Iranian military says seven "violating" vessels caught fire in waters around Hormuz Strait